Known Serial Numbers: 70, 71, 72, 73, 74K, 78K, 79, 80K, 81K, 82K, 83, 84.
Very briefly the first five Bulldogs were known as Bulldog 1, 2, 3, etc. but shortly thereafter (in August 1930) these were
renumbered as 70, 71, 72K, 73K, and 74K.

Notes

Acquired primarily to replace the Ansaldo Balillas.

June 5, 1929 - a commission is formed to consider the purchase of new fighter aircraft for the Regiment.

Sept.23, 1929 - Capt. A.Dzenitis is despatched to England to try out the Bristol Bulldogs.

November 15, 1929 - the commission holds its second meeting - selects the Bulldog.

Dec.9, 1929 - the Bulldogs begin entering service. They are immediately dispatched to the
fighter squadron (under the command of Dzenitis) and are flown not only by the fighter squadron
pilots but also by guest squadron members Zeps, Raisevs and Klein, all Estonians.

Dec.10, 1929 - the commission meets for the last time (discussing technical matters pertaining to introducing the new type)

The first batch of Bulldogs had construction numbers 7353 - 7357. They had Gnome-Rhone
Jupiter VI engines and, in place of the usual Vickers machine guns, Oerlikons were installed.

July 1930 - an additional seven Bulldog Mark IIs are ordered. These had the construction numbers
7439 - 7445. The first five had G.R.Jupiter VI engines, and the remaining two had GR-9 ASBs.

1930 - parachutes became standard equipment in the latvian air force, but pilots of Bulldogs
tended not to wear them because they did not fit well in the cockpit.

It was rare and outside of their normal function, but the Bulldogs were even found to be capable of
carrying a small bombload if required.

1935 - in an attempt to standardize the naming of aircraft types (by function), the Bulldogs were assigned the code D3.

July 13, 1938 - pilot Binders, apparently lost, flies into Russian air space but manages to
land in friendly Poland.

September, 1939 - six Bulldogs are still on active service, assigned to the 3rd Fighter Squadron.

June 15, 1940 - with the Soviet occupation/invasion looming, the Bulldogs stationed at Spilve
are ordered to quietly fly out from the airfield at twilight and re-base to the Latvian University's
agricultural farm near Ramava.

June 18, 1940 - with the Soviets now in charge, the entire Latvian air force is grounded and
the Bulldogs at Ramava are stripped of their weapons.

The Soviets collected the Bulldogs and stored one or two of them, along with some Letovs and other assorted
aircraft, in the Provodnik rubber tire warehouse. They remained there during the first Soviet occupation
and the german occupation as well, being considered too outdated for military use. The remaining surviving
Bulldogs were reportedly stored in wooden sheds in the eastern part of Latvia.

In total, six Bulldogs were involved in fatal accidents, the highest number of any aircraft type
in the latvian air force.

#70

When acquired, this plane was briefly serialed as (Bulldog) #1. Almost immediately, it was re-numbered as #70.

1930, 1931, 1932, 1933... with the 1st Fighter Squadron

February 14, 1930 - flown by Nikolajs Bulmanis.

February 1933 - returned to service after repair (Checked out by pilot Iesalnieks).

Sept. 15, 1933 - by this date, the aircraft had logged over 1000 flights totalling 493 hours of flying time.

December 1934 - returned to service after repair (Checked out by pilot Bambers).

October 11, 1935 - crashed (pilot: Kandis)

July 1936 - returned to service after repair (Checked out by pilot Treijs)

[See profile on Photo page 1 and image on Photo page 2]

#71

When acquired, this plane was briefly serialed as (Bulldog) #2. Almost immediately, it was re-numbered as #71.

1930 - with the 1st Fighter Squadron

April 30, 1931 - Crashed.

#72

When acquired, this plane was briefly serialed as (Bulldog) #3. Almost immediately, it was re-numbered as #72.

1930 - 1937 on the roster of the 1st Fighter Squadron

October 1937 - transferred from the 1st Fighter Squadron to the 2nd Fighter Squadron.

While participating in the third "Flight Around Latvia" competition, Sapratnieks, flying
Bulldog #72 suffers a tyre blowout while landing at Liepaja. No major damage resulted, and the aircraft continued in the competition.

October 1938 - appears on the roster of the 3rd Squadron.

This aircraft survived 10 years of operational use, remaining in service until the Soviet occupation in 1940.

[See image on Photo page 2]

#73

When acquired, this plane was briefly serialed as (Bulldog) #4. Almost immediately, it was re-numbered as #73.

October 1937 - transferred from the 1st Fighter Squadron to the 2nd Fighter Squadron.

October 1938 - appears on the roster of the 3rd Fighter Squadron.

October 1 - 2, 1938 - piloted by Lasmanis, #82 participates in the "Flight Around Latvia" competition.
On the second day the aircraft suffered an engine failure which led to a forced landing near Smiltene. The aircraft suffered some damage, which
was repairable but not in time to continue in the competition.

This aircraft survived 10 years of operational use, remaining in service until the Soviet occupation in 1940.